Steel tariffs spark fears of tit-for-tat move on soyabeans

Steel and aluminium are weighing on US farmers’ minds after the US decision to impose tariffs on steel and aluminium imports.

“Grain market traders continue to try and make sense of the new Trump tariffs on steel and aluminium and what they could mean for agriculture,” said commodity brokers Allendale.

With China being the biggest buyer of US soyabeans — accounting for about 60 per cent of total exports — the American Soybean Association has expressed concerns about a potential trade war, requesting a meeting with the President on Monday.

In a letter, ASA president and Iowa farmer John Heisdorffer urged the President to “modify if not reverse [his] decision to avoid a trade war that could seriously undermine our industry, which is highly dependent on trade”.

“The importance of the China market in sustaining our livelihoods and our industry’s role in the nation’s agricultural and rural economy cannot be overstated,” Mr Heisdorffer added.

The US steel and aluminium tariff hit soyabean prices last week, although reports of continuing droughts in Argentina have been supporting the market. Soyabeans are trading at $10.365 a bushel, down 3 per cent since it hit a year’s high on March 2, but up 1 per cent from the start of the week.